World Government Corruption Rankings

Transparency International released the Corruption Perceptions Index ranking all of the world’s governments and you’ll never guess where your country lands. Or maybe you will; I don’t know you from Adam.

They also put out this infographic (the most informative type of graphic):

The bottom of the list (most corrupt) should come as no surprise (although, surprise can be feigned if you wish). It’s a three-way tie between Somalia, North Korea, and Afghanistan. Yes, the countries with what can only be described as a façade of a government to mask the regimes of a megalomaniac (see: Incubus) dictator hell-bent on serving their own agendas ranked last. Go figure.

The top of the list (least corrupt) consists of Denmark, Finland, and New Zealand (or as I will now refer to them as “countries I want to move to”). All countries no one has ever had a problem with or had anything bad to say about. This bodes well for ticket sales for The Hobbit and Flight of The Conchords. Congrats, mates!

A big surprise was America – clocking in at only 19. Still not great, but much like a parent expecting their child to get a report card full of Ds, I’ll gladly celebrate this C-. We’re so proud of you America; let’s get you an ice cream. Oh, you already have one. And you took it from that Canada boy. We’ll work on that.

Another country that improved in the rankings was Egypt. WAY TO GO, EGYPT! Still pretty corrupt coming in at 112, but that’s six spots better than last year’s 118. Keep it up, Egypt! We’re not expecting leaps and bounds, just that you’re doing a little better every time. (Logan’s Note: Well, their government’s about to fully collapse a second time, so let’s not hold our breaths.)

It should be noted that this survey was based on PERCEPTIONS of corruption – meaning legally created governmental loopholes and deep dark government secrets were not factored in. So, in theory, this is really a ranking of the countries with the best PR, making America’s 19 a bit less impressive.